A poem I'm posting for a friend... much love.

I said “No.”

By: Erin 

I remember……. I said “No.”

Actually I begged you to stop

I pleaded with you to leave me alone

But you didn’t

You ignored me

Abused my body

You violated me, my body, and my spirit

I remember…….I said “No.”

Time went by; my lips sealed shut

I felt filthy every single day

No one could know, the shame, the disgust

That bathroom became a place for purging the wrong you did

The filth you left inside my body

The impurity and shame I held within

Sometimes I wondered: Did I say yes in some strange way?

Sometimes I asked myself: Did I tell him I wanted that?

Sometimes I questioned: Did I deserve this?

But the truth is out, it’s loud and clear:

I remember…….I said: “No.”

My experience is not uncommon, or unique to me

This horrible thing happens at an alarming degree

I’m working through it day by day

Even though sometimes there is nothing I want to say

But I will always remember that I said “No.”

And that he should have let go.